Company aims to expand into high-growth markets through its Pan Malaysia and GCC strategies

by ASILA JALIL / Pic credit: uemedgenta.com

UEM Edgenta Bhd is planning to achieve revenue growth of 12% over five years till 2025 via regional expansion and its effort to deepen its solutions base.

MD and CEO Syahrunizam Samsudin (picture) said under the Edgenta of the Future 2025 plan, the group aims to be a technology-enabled solutions company with a focus on healthcare by 2025.

The company aims to expand into high-growth markets through its Pan Malaysia and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) strategies and move up the value chain in its existing markets in Singapore and Taiwan.

“I believe Saudi Arabia as a market is going to be extremely important for us in the future because it offers us growth both in healthcare and technology,” he said in a virtual press briefing yesterday.

The group’s orderbook currently stands at RM11.6 billion and it has secured new contracts of over RM700 million in the financial year 2021 (FY21).

He said the company is also targeting a savings of RM100 million in the next five years which will be done through mechanisation and automation efforts, optimising procurement spend and streamlining its business structure.

A large chunk of the savings will be utilised into technology development, specifically in its recently launched digital ecosystem Edgenta NXT which is expected to be the company’s driver for growth.

UEM Edgenta recorded a net profit of RM6.13 million in its second quarter ended June 30, 2021 (2Q21), after posting a net loss of RM26.91 million a year prior supported by higher revenue and lower expenses.

Revenue rose 20.1% year-on-year (YoY) to RM538.6 million in the quarter against RM448.47 million in 2Q20 attributable to healthcare support realisation of full impact of mega contracts secured in Singapore as well as infrastructure services with higher pavement works for expressways.

For the first half of the year (1H21), the company’s net profit came in at RM12.83 million compared to a net loss of RM15.76 million in the corresponding period last year.

Revenue increased 7.6% YoY to RM1.02 billion in 1H21 from RM950.34 million last year buoyed by its healthcare division and its efforts to grow its regional business.

Its healthcare support division reported a 14.1% YoY revenue growth supported by the operationalisation of key contract wins from Singapore and Taiwan and higher variation orders for local concession businesses.

The division recorded RM645 million in revenue and a pretax profit of RM37.1 million in 1H21 compared to RM565.4 million and RM27.6 million respectively last year.

The division is proactively pursuing new opportunities in Singapore and Taiwan with its recent win in the provision of hospital support services to hospitals in both countries including Alexandra Hospital and Tan Tock Seng Hospital in Singapore; Taitung Christian Hospital, Wei Gong Hospital, National Taiwan University, Hospital East Campus and Cheng Ching Ben Tang Hospital in Taiwan, on top of Field Hybrid Intensive Care Unit contract for eight hospitals across Malaysia.

Syahrunizam said the company is committed to resuming dividend payments for its FY21.

“We will continue with our policy for dividends and we are working hard to ensure it happens. So, we are still targeting that moving forward,” he added.

The group did not provide dividend payments for the previous financial year in an attempt to preserve cash.